This invention relates to the disposal of highly toxic chemicals such as chemicals used in chemical weapons. The Department of Defense Appropriation Act of 1986 (Public Law 99-145) has directed the Secretary of Defense to destroy the chemical weapons stockpile of highly toxic chemicals in a safe and effective manner. Further, bilateral agreements between Russia and the United States direct both countries to reduce their respective chemical weapons stockpile by year 2002.
Such chemical weapons include: 1) nerve gases such as ethyl-N, N dimethyl phosphoramino cyanidate (common name Tabun or agent GA), isopropyl methyl phosphonofluoridate (common name Sarin or agent GB), o-ethyl-S-(2 -diisopropyl aminoethyl) methyl phosphono-thiolate (agent VX), and 2) vesicants including bis(2-chloro ethyl) sulfide (mustard gas, agent H or agent HD), dichloro (2-chlorovinyl) arsine (Lewisite or agent L), bis(2(2-chloro ethylthio)ethyl)ester (agent T) or their combinations with each other or with other liquids. Nerve gases are highly toxic in both liquid and vapor form. Exposure of humans to sufficient concentrations of nerve gases leads to convulsions caused by uncontrolled stimulation of nerves, and death within minutes caused by respiratory failure. Exposure to vesicants leads to the blistering of exposed tissue, eye injuries and damage to the respiratory tracts from inhalation of the chemical. In addition to causing these immediate short term injuries, which can be fatal, some highly toxic chemicals are carcinogens.
It is clear that such toxic chemicals cannot be disposed of using traditional chemical disposal techniques because of the inherent dangers involved to human workers from the threat of contact with these chemicals. Further, they cannot be moved safely from one location to another because of the threat of an accidental release of the chemical during transport. In fact, U.S. Army studies have indicated that accidents occurring during the transportation of such highly toxic chemicals cannot be mitigated. However, existing stockpiles of such highly toxic substances cannot be left at their current storage locations indefinitely. Today, at least eight locations in mainland United States and Johnston Island in the Pacific, as well as seven or more locations in Russia contain storage sites for these highly toxic chemicals either in bulk storage containers or enclosed in weapons such as rockets, land mines, mortars or cartridges. It is estimated that there are 25,000 tons of such chemicals in the United States and 40,000 tons in Russia.
Since there currently does not exist a method of transporting such toxic substances, a need has arisen to dispose of these substances at their storage locations. However, complete disposal on site requires that a disposal plant be built at every site. Five technologies are currently being developed and may, in the future, provide the principal methods for disposal of such highly toxic chemicals. These are incineration, chemical neutralization, super critical water oxidation, steam gasification and plasma arc pyrolysis. All these methods incur tremendous costs in implementation. These costs, when multiplied by the number of plants which store these chemical weapons, become prohibitive.
Thus, a need exists for a disposal system that will enable the safe disposal of such highly toxic chemicals at reasonable cost.